But this wasn’t really about a substandard team - it’s not like they played well against Germany and lost. They didn’t even play badly and lose.

They barely played at all – shedding all semblance of cohesion and allowing Germany to pretty much walk it in five times in 18 first-half minutes.

The relative unimportance of individuals was shown by Thiago Silva, whose suspension many cited as a key factor against Germany. Two minutes into his return versus the Dutch, he conceded a penalty after letting Arjen Robben race clean through, and it took an outrageous pity call from referee Djamel Haimoudi to keep him on the pitch.

The Brazilian personnel wasn’t great, but this was about more than that.

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NEYMAR

Scolari gambled on the young forward as the man on whom the nation’s World Cup hopes would live or die. And when Juan Zuniga felled Neymar with a knee to the back that left him with a cracked vertebra, it felt like a death.

Fred’s reaction on being told the news was typical.

Instead of moving on, Brazil wallowed in their grief. Partly because they had nobody to replace him, partly because Scolari must have felt it would inspire the team – but mainly because Neymar really is that big a deal in Brazil.

Out came the #ForçaNeymar hats, out came the creepy facemasks, out came the Neymar shirt during the national anthem.

It felt like Brazil had used up so much energy ‘mourning’ Neymar that when the match kicked off they had none left to play the match.

Of course Brazil missed him on the pitch – but their mawkishly excessive response to his injury ultimately proved far more damaging.

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PRESSURE

We can only imagine what it is like to head into a World Cup at home with your entire football-mad nation not hoping but demanding that you win the whole thing.